GREYBACK CANE BEETLE, LEPIDODERMA ALBOHIRTITM. 21 



touch. After laying 20 eggs the beetle left the soil and climbed up on 

 the side of the gauze cage. After a few minutes the exposed eggs ])egan 

 to burst ; about one-fourth of the contents ran out and dried in a droplet 

 at one side. 



On 8tli January the beetle in B was on the top of the soil turning- 

 round and round to the right, as if anxious to lay. She appeared to 

 be tired out, for she frequently fell over on her back and had considerable 

 difficulty in righting herself. D was still on top of the soil, but had laid 

 no more eggs. 



On 11th January B was dead; on dissection I found onl}- 6 ripe 

 eggs ; she was evidently an old specimen, and had probabl^^ already laid 

 one or more sets in the field. Xo eggs were laid after her capture. 



On 12th January D Avas dead, lying on top of the soil. On dissec- 

 tion I found the ovaries empty and very little food in the intestine, 

 though she had been supplied with fresh leaves daily. In the soil, which 

 was still dry as dust, I found that she had laid 30 more eggs, near the 

 bottom of the pot, 5 inches deep. In a few cases the eggs were sticking 

 together in twos and threes, and also .so covered with the soil particles 

 that they were hard to find. This was a remarkable beetle, for she laid 

 50 eggs during a week's confinement, 20 in the first set and 30 more after- 

 a rest of five days. 



On 14th January I found A dying; the ovaries were empty. The 

 eggs from D were small and dry. On the other hand I was surprised to 

 find the eggs of C increasing in size, but this was due to the fact that 

 the pot had absorbed water through the bottom from the shelf during a 

 rain, and the lower soil M'as fairly moist. 



On 22nd January the eggs of A had hatched, and the grubs appeared 

 to be about a day olcl ; hence the incubation period was almost normal — 

 15 or 16 days. The eggs in both C and D finally dried so that they did 

 not hatch. 



This experiment indicates that under unfavourable climatic condi- 

 tions the ovipositing of the beetles is seriously interfered with, for not 

 only is the act delayed or the beetle itself destroyed, but even if 

 accomplished the eggs may succumb to desiccation. 



Re-emergence of the Beetles. 



It has been generally supposed that once the beetles laid their 

 eggs they died; in fact, this has been so stated in practically^ all the 

 publications on the subject. Nevertheless, during the past season 

 (1920-21) we have been able to demonstrate that quite the opposite is the 

 case, for undoubtedly cane-beetles are repeaters. That is to say, after 

 laying a set of eggs, instead of dying in the soil the female goes through 

 the performance of emerging all over again. Just as in the first instance, 

 she frequently feeds upon the cane-leaves before flying away to the trees- 

 to develop a second set of eggs. ]\Ioreover, Ave now know that this pro- 

 cedure is continued as long as the beetles live; hence, three or more sets 

 of eggs are probably deposited, for they are on the wing from two tO' 

 three months. jNIr. J. Clark (35), formerly in charge of the nursery for 

 the Colonial Sugar Refining Company at Ilambledon, long ago considered 

 this probable ; and it gives me pleasure to noAv be able to verify the 

 statements of such a keen observer, in this and other matters dealing- 

 Avith the life-history of the pest. 



